Bag-turning machine



Feb, 17, 1925.

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Feb-.- 17, 1925 1,526,952 D. BELCHER BAG TURNING MACHINE Filed May 16. 1921 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 7 D. BELCHER BAG TURNING mamas Filed May 16; 1921 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Feb. 17, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DANIEL BELCHER, OF WEBSTER GROVES, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO BEMIS BRO. BAG COMPANY, OF ST, LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF MISSOURI.

BAG-TURNING MACHINE.

Application filed May 16, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DANIEL Bnnonnn, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Webster Groves, in the county of St. Louis and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bag-Turning Machines, of which the following isa full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the ac companying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in bag-turning machines, one of the objects being to produce a machine of this kind adapted to turn relatively stiff fabric bags, such as salt-bags, without removing the starch or other filling from the fabric.

A further object is to positively turn fabric bags without wrinkling the fabric and without liability of causing portions of the fabric to accumulate in the form of irregular folds or wads in the bagturning mechanism.

Prior to this invention, bag-turning machines have been equipped with a device for holding the mouth of a bag to be turned while the lower portion of the bag is hung loosely from this holding device. A reciprocating bag-turning plunger has been used to turn the bag while the latter is loosely suspended from its mouth, and as a consequence, the open end or mouth of the bag is turned first and the loosely suspended closed end of the bag is gradually drawn onto the plunger during the turning operation. The plunger moves very rapidly and it imparts a quick jerky motion to the loosely suspended closed end of the bag, whereby the loose portions of the flexible fabric are quickly thrown in irregular lines while the bag is passing onto the plunger. This results in undesirable removal of starch or other compound used as a filler forthe meshes of salt bags and the like. In turning a bag of any type, the rapid, irregular motion of the loosely suspended portions of the fabric is liable to cause irregular folds in the fabric which cannot always be removed by the rapidly moving bag-turning mechanism. In some instances, the fabric has been folded in the form of wads tending to obstruct the bag-turning plunger with the result of tearing the bag and injuring the mechanism. In comparing this Serial No. 469,868.

old type of bag-turning mechanism with the specific structure hereinafter described, it will be important to observe that the old mechanism is adapted to act upon a bag which is loosely suspended at its mouth. and that the mouth end of the bag is turned first, the closed end being turned last.

As an illustration of one form of the invent-ion I have shown a machine having a bag-holder from which the bag is gradually stripped in such a manner that the closed 7 end of the bagis turned first and the month end is turned last. This is directly contrary to the action of the old mechanism to which I have referred. Furthermore, instead of being loosely suspended from its mouth, the bag is slipped onto the outer face of a bag-holder adapted to extend from the month end of the bag to the closed end, so as to support and guide the bag during the bag-turning operation. The operator slips the bag onto the outer face of the bagholder, and a plunger engages the closed end of the bag, so as to gradually strip the bag from the bag holder, at the same time turning the bag around friction faces at one end of the bag-holder. The bag is thus displaced from the outside of the bag-holder to the inside thereof, and during this turning operation the bag is held partly by the bag-turning plunger and partly by the cagholder from which the bag is graduall stripped.

By supporting and turning the bag in this manner, I avoid the production of irregular folds which have heretofore clogged the bag-turning mechanism, and the bag is positively turned around smooth friction faces on the bag-holder so as to avoid the jerking of irregular folds in the fabric. As a consequence, fabric bags having their meshes filled with starch and the'like can be turned without undue removal of the filling material from the fabric.

Another object is to produce an improved bag-turning machine wherein the bagholder is displaced from the path of the bag-turning plunger, so that the operator can easily apply the bags to the bag-holder without being exposed to the danger of injury by the mechanism.

A further object is to provide an auxiliary turning mechanism adapted to unfold the wrinkles which sometimes appear at the mouths of the bags, after the bags have been acted upon by the main turning mechamsm.

lVith the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention comprises the novel con struction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more specifically described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein is shown the preferred embodiment of the invention. However. it is to be understood that the invention con'iprehends changes, variations and n'iodifications which come within the scope of the claims hereunto appended.

Fig. I is a side elevation of a ha -turning machine embodying the features of this invention.

Fig. II is a rear elevation ot the machine shown in Fig. I.

Fig. III is a top view of the machine shown in Figs. I and II.

Fig. IV is a fragmentary view of a part of the mechanism through which motion is transmitted to the bag-turning plunger.

Fig. V is an enlarged fragmentary top view of the bag-turning plunger and certain elements associated therewith.

Fig. VI is a side elevation of the parts shown in Fig. V, and also showing a part of the bag-holding device to which the bags are delivered by the plunger. Fig. VII is a view similar to Fig. VI illustrating the parts in the positions they occupy when a bag is delivered to the bag holding device.

Fig. VIII is an enlarged top or plan view showing a portion of the bagturning plunger and also showing the arms which hold the bag while it is acted upon 1 y the plunger.

Fig. IX is a section taken approximately on the line IXIX, Fig. VIII.

Fig. X is a transverse section through the bag-holding arms, Sl1( ving a bag on said arms, a portion of the bag being broken away to show the bag-turning plunger which reciprocates between the upper and lower arms.

Fig. XI is an enlarged top view, partly in section, showing the bag as it appears while it is being stripped from the bagholding arms.

I lig. XII is a view similar to Fig. XI showing the bag in the positionit occupies innnediately after it has been stripped from the bag-holding arms.

Fig-XIII is a perspective view showing the mouth of the bag, and illustrating folds, or wrinkles, whichv sometimes appear at the corners of the mouth of the'bag.

The bag-turning mechanism includes a reciprocating plunger A and arms 1 and 2 whereby the bag 'is held while it is acted upon by the plunger. These arms (Figs. I. III, VIII, and-IX) are supported by a carrier 13 slida'b'ly mounted on a horizontal rod 8, said carrier having a depending lug l (Figs. I, VI and IX) extending into a horizontal groove which lies parallel with the guide rod 3. The carrier B is thus guided in a straight, horizontal line and it can be reciprocated to locate the bag-holding arms 1 and 2 at the path of the bag turning plunger A. v

The bag-holding arms 2 are rigidly secured to the carrier B by means of screws 5, which are shown most clearly in Fig. IX, said screws passing through slots in wings which extend from arms 2. Each arm I (Figs. VIII and IX) is secured by means of screws 6 to an operating arm 7, and each of said operating arms is pivoted to the carrier B by means of a screw 8. The two operating arms 7 are parallel with each other and they are connected together through the medium of a spacer block 9 (Figs. VIII and IX) having a roll 10 which lies in a groove 11 formed in a stationary guide member 12. lVhen the carrier B is reciprocated along the guide rod 3, the roll 10 (Figs. VIII and IX) travels in the groove 11 with the result of moving the pivoted arms 1 toward and away from the arms 2, each arm 1 being pivoted at 8 and provided with an operating arm 7 to which the roll 10 is secured.

Vrhen the carrier B occupies the position shown by full lines in Figs. III and VIII. the outer ends of the bag-receiving arms 1. lie adjacent to the arms 2, and a bag can then be very easily slipped onto said arms. In Fig. III, I have shown a table 13 adapt ed to support the bags to be turned. IVhcu the machine is in service. the operator removes the top bag from a. pile of bags on the table 13, and slips the bag onto the outer faces of the arms I and 2, while said arms are located in their bag-receiving positions entirely beyond the path of the bag-tar ing plunger A. Thereafter the carrier i3 is actuated to shift. these bag-receiving arms from the positions shown by full lines in Fig. VIII to the positions shown by dotted lines, and during this operation the roll 10 travels in the groove 11 for the purpose of moving the arm 1 away from the arm 2, and. when said arms occupy the positioi'is shown by dotted lines. the arm 1 is pa rall-el. with the arm 2. The bag-turning plunger A then moves to the left from the position shown by Fig. VIII and it engages the closed end of the bag with the result of turning the ban on the outer ends of the arms 1 and 2. Figs. IX and II show that there are two upper arms designated 1 and 2 andtwo lower arms designated by the same characters. The bag-turning plunger A is in the form of a wide blade which travels between the upper and lower arms while it engages the closed end of the bag X. The bag is thus turned, or reversed, while it is drawn around the outer ends of the arn'is l and 2, said outer Figs. VIII, XI and XII.

ends being located adjacent to the plunger A in Figs. VI and VIII. During the bagturning operation, the bag is stripped from the arms 1 and 2, and the plunger A eventually forces the closed end of the bag into the accumulator, as will be hereafter de scribed. By referring to F VIII it will be seen that the arms 1 and 2 are supported only at their rearmost ends, and for this reason, together with the fact that these arms are formed of metal having the usual amount of resiliency, the extended portions of said arms are capable of independent movement relative to each other. The above arrangement protects parts of applicants machine from breakage, for ifa bag should be improperly positioned on the arms 1 and 2 and should become bunched as the flange A attempted to force said bag between the arms 1 and 2, the extended portions of said arms would yield, thus permitting said bunched bag to be forced between said arms 1 and 2.

The bagholding arms 1 and 2 are long enough to extend from the mouth of the bag to the closed end thereof, and the extended ends of these arms are provided with friction faces around which the bag is turned, said friction faces being indicated i F in The upper arms 1 and 2 are separated from the COIIQSPdHtling lower arms (Fig. X) to receive the bag turning plunger A, and the extended ends of said arms are provided with lateral extensions 1. and 2. The extensions 1 converge toward each other (Fig. X) and the same is true of extensions 2. These extensions lie at the extreme ends of the arms, where the friction faces F are forn'ied (Figs. XI and XII), the object being to provide substantially continuous friction faces F at the sides of the bagholder. However. the extensions 1 are separated from each other (Fig. X) for the bag-holder is to beshifted to the right from the position shown in Fig. X while the plunger A lies between the upper and lower arms.

The end of the bag-turning plunger is provided with rounded lateral extensions A (Figs. XI and XII) adapted to turn the corners of the bag, and at this point the plunger is approximately equal in width to the bagholding frame formed by the arms 1 and 2.

In the ordinary bag-turning mechanism to which I have previously referred. the end of the bag-turning plunger frictionally engages and slides along the bag while the month of the bag is rigidly secured. In the device herein described, the plunger A pushes against the closed end of the bag X (Fig. XI) while the bag is being gradually turned around the friction faces F at the extended ends of the bag-holding arms 1 and 2. The plunger thus constitutes a stripping device whereby the bag is gradually stripped from the outside of the bag holder and at the same time forced into the bag-holder, fronii which it is discharged as will be hereafter pointed out.

The guide member 12 (Figs. III and VIII) is normally stationary, although it is adjustably secured through the medium of a pivot 14 and a clamping screw 15, which passes through a slot in a wing extending from the guide member.

The bag-turning plunger A is supported by a reciprocating carriage C slid-ably mounted on. horizontal guide rods 16 which lie at a right angle to the guide rod The carriage (l includes tubular members sur rounding the respective guide rods 16, and a. web 1? connecting said tubular members, as shown most clearly by Figs. VI and VII. The bag-turning plunger A is rigidly secured to a lug 18 which extends from the web 17. It will now be understood that the carriage C, including its web 17 and lug 18, may be reciprocated along the guide rod 16, and that the plunger A will travel with this carriage.

The means for reciprocating the carriage C includes a long lever 19 (Figs. I, III, IV and VI) and a link 20 connecting said lever to the carriage C. The lever 19 is pivotally sin iported at 21. as shown by Fig. I. This lever is actuated through the medium 01' a crank 22 fixed to a shaft 23 (Figs. I and IV) and a link whereby motion is transmitted from the crank 22 to said lever 19. This link includes a rod 24: (Fig. IV) and connecting devices 25 and 26 adjustably mounted on said rod, the rod being threaded to receive nuts between which the connect ing devices are secured. The connecting device 25 is secured to the crank 22 through the medium of a pivot 27, and the connect ing device 26 is attached to the lever 11) through the medium of a pivot 28. The shaft 23 is rotated continuously through the medium of a large gear wheel 29 (Figs. I and III) which is fixed to said shaft, a pinion 30 meshing with said gear wheel, said. pinion being fixed to a shaft 31 provided with an operating pulley 32. The pulley 32 may be driven continuously with the result of transmitting motion through the mechanism just described and thereby imparting a reciprocating motion to the bag-turning plunger A.

I will now describe the means for recip rocating the carrier B to which the bag holding arms 1 and 2 are secured. 33 designates a long operating lever (Figs. I, II. VI and IX) in the form of a bell crank pivotally supported by a pin (Fig. II) and having a slot 35 at its upper end for the reception of a pin 36 on the reciprocating carrier 13. A tension spring 37 is connected at its upper end to the short arm of the lever 33 as shown by Fig. I, the lower end of said spring being secured to a stationary part of the machine frame. This spring 37 cooperates with the lever to move the carrier B in one direction. The means for moving the carrier B in the opposite direction includes a cam 38 (Figs. I and II) on a rotary shaft 39, a lever 40 pivotally supported at 41, said lever having a roll which engages the cam 38, and a link connecting the lever 40 to the long lever 33. This connecting link includes a rod 42 provided at its ends with connecting devices 43 (Figs. I and II) which are pivoted to the levers 83 and 40, respectively. The shaft 39 is rotated continuously, as will be hereafter described, and the cam 38 is secured to this shaft for the purpose of actuating the lever 40, whereby motion is transmitted through the rod 42 and connecting devices 43 to the long operating lever 83. for the purpose of actuating the carrier B to which the bag-receivinn arms 1 and 2 are secured. The cam 38 serves as means for moving the lever 33 and carrier B in one direction. and these elements are restored through the medium of the spring 37 (Fig. II).

The means for rotating the cam shaft 39 comprises a bevel ,e'ear 44-. fixed to said shaft 39 (Figs. I and III) and a bevel gear 45 meshing with the gear 44. said gear 45 being secured to the rotary shaft 23.

It will now be understood that the bagreceiving arms 1 and 2 are secured to the reciprocating; carrier l3, and that the bagturning; plunger A is secured to a reciprocating; carriage which travels in a line at a "ia ht angle to the path of the carrier B. The arms 1 and 2 are shifted from the bagreceivine' positions shown by full lines in Figs. III and VIII. to their bag-turning positions shown by dotted lines in Fig. VIII and by full lines in Figs. XI and XII. The bag-turning plunger A is shifted from the position shown by Figs. V and VI to the po sition shown by Fig. VII for the purpose of turning the bag X and delivering it to an accumulator which will be hereafter described. The plunger A forms part of the bag-turning machine. and it also serves as a feeder for transmitting the bags from the baeturning mechanism to the accumulator.

I will now refer to a bag-opening member in the form of a blade 46. which is shown most clearly in liipgs. V. VI and VII. After the bag X has been turned. and after the bag-receiving arms 1 and 2 have been displaced from their bag-turning positions the blade 46 enters the mouth of the bag and moves downwardly to the position shown by Fig. VII, for the purpose of forcibly opening the mouth of the bag, which is then supported on the plunger A. The cooperative action of the plunger A and bagholding arms 1 and 2 does not always completely turn the corners at the mouths of the bags, and the function of the. blade 46 is to forcibly open the bags, as shown by Fig. VII. for the purpose of removing wrinkles from these corners of the bags.

The bag-opening blade 46 is secured to an approximately horizontal plate 47 (Figs. V, VI and VII) and this plate 47 is supported by a pair of parallel arms 48 and 49 on the reciprocating carriage C. The arm 49 is pivoted to the carriage C through the medium of a pivot rod 49. (Figs. VI and VII). and the arm 48 is secured to a pivot rod 48 which is also mounted in the carriage t. The upper end of arm 49 is attached to the plate 47 by means of a pivot pin 50, and the upper end of arm 48 is provided with a pin 51 which extends into a slot 52 in the plate 47. A spring 53 connects the pin 50 to the pin 51, as shown by Figs. VI and VII. and this spring yieldingly retains the pivot pin 51 in the right hand end of the slot 52 in the plate 47. The pin 51 normally lies in this end of the slot and it is only under unusual conditions that said pin occupies any other position IEliltll't' to the slot. so the pin 51 may be considered as a pivotal connection between the arm 48 and the plate 47. The purpose of the spring; 53 and slot 52 will be hereafter described.

To shift the bag-opening blade 46 to the position shown by Fig. VII. an operating arm 54 (Fins. VI and VII) is secured to the pivot rod 48 on which the arm 48 is secured. From the foregoing it should be understood that if the operating arm 54- is moved downwardly from the position shown by Fig. VI, the arm 48 will move forwardly and downwardly, and a corresponding movement will be imparted to the arm 49, for these arms 48 and 49 are secured to the plate 47 through the medium of pivot pins 50 and 51. and the spring 53 tends to retain the pivot pin 51 in a fixed position relative to the pin 50. Therefore. when the operating arm 54 is moved downwardly from the position shown by Fig. VI. the plate 47 will move forwardly and downwardly, the object being to impart a move ment of this kind to the bag-opening blade 46 which is inserted into the mouthof the ba t and then moved to the position shown by Fig. VII. The operating" arm 54 is provided with a roller at adapted to travel along a horizontal track 56 leading to a downwardly extending cam slot 57. said slot being formed in a bracket 58 which is secured to a stationary part of the frame by means of bolts 59 shown in Figs. VI and VII. lVhen the operating arm 54 occupies the position shown by Fig. VI, a lug 49 extending from pivot 49, engages a stop pin 49 on the carriage During each bag turning operation, the reciprocating carriage C moves to the left from the position shown by Figs. V and VI, and the arms 48, 49 and 54 are carried by this reciprocating carriage. As a consequence, the roll on the end of arm 54 travels to the left along the track 56 and then into the cam slot 57, whereby said arm 54 is thrown forwardly and downwardly to the position shown by Fig. VII. Motion is thus transmitted from the operating arm 54 to the bag-turning blade 46 so as to shift said blade to the position shown in Fig. V II. The blade 46 enters the mouth ofthe and then moves downwardly to forcibly open the bag, as previously pointed out, for the purpose of removing wrinkles of the corners at the mouth of the bag.

The wrinkles, or fold, just referred to are shown at X in Figs. XII and XIII, and they are apparently due partly to the fact that the upper bag-holding arms 1 and 2 are separated from the corresponding lower arms. Actual practice has shown that wrinkles of this kind are occasionally formed at the mouths of the bags, this being espe cially true of relatively stiff bags.

At its extreme end, the plunger A is about as wide as the bag, but at the bag-opening blade 46 the plunger is narrower, as shown by Fig. V, so when said blade is forced downwardly to open the bag, the wrinkles X are displaced from the plunger, and the wrinkled portions of the bag are then free to unfold when the mouth of the bag is \ensioned between the'blade 46 and plunger A (Fig. VII). I

Under some unusual conditions, the bagturning plunger A may fail to properly turn the bag. For example, a bag may be improperly applied to the arms 1 and 2, so that its closed end will hang from said arms, or a bag may not be slipped over all of the arms 1 and 2, it being understood that there are four of these arms. If a bag is thus improperly applied to the arms 1 and 2, the plunger "A. may be forced through a portion of the bag and fail to turn the same. In this event the bag-opening blade 46 will strike the mutilated bag, and since breakage may result from a continued forward motion of the blade, said blade is yieldingly secured to the cam-actuated arm 54. This yielding securing means includes the spring 53 (Fig. VI) whereby the pivot 50 is connected to the pivot 51 the latter being in the slot 52. By mounting the blade 46 on a yielding support of this kind, the cam actuated arm 54 can move downwardly without imparting a forward motion to the blade 46 when the latter is stopped by engaging a mutilated bag on the arms 1 and 2.

Ilefore pointing out the details of the accumulator shown in the drawings, I will state that this device comprises a rotary drum (Figs. VI and VII) provided with a series of radial bag-holders, in the form of grippers, which are adapted to hold collections of bags. The drum maybe turned by any suitable mechanism (not shown) to successively locate the grippers in alinement with the bag-turning plunger which forces the closed ends of the bags into the grippers.

D designates a rotary drum fixed to a shaft 62 which may be rotatably mounted in suitable bearings (not shown). The series of bag-holders is formed by radial grippers located in the drum. Each gripper comprises a rigid gripping jaw 64 (Figs. VI and VII) which may be made of a flat plate having ears through which attaching rods 61 are inserted. These rods 61 rigidly secure the rigid jaws 64 to the rotary drum D. Each gripper also includes a yielding jaw 65 in the form of a lever fulcrumed on a pivot pin 66 at the free end of an arm 67, said arm being supported by a pivot pin 68 carried by the rotary drum. Each arm 67 may be moved about the axis of its pivot 68, and each yielding gripper jaw 65 is movable about its fulcrum or pivot 66. Each arm 67 is provided with an extension 67, and a compression spring 69 is interposed between this extension and a similar extension on a rigid jaw 64.

In Figs. VI and VII, f designates a collection of bags hanging from one of the gripping devices, and k designates larger collections of bags hanging from other gripping devices. The collect-ion X is located at the path of the bag-turning plunger A, and the gripping device which holds this collection of bags is located in its bagreceiving position, said gripping device being in alinement with the plunger A. Upon the completion of a bag-turning operation, the reciprocating bag-turning plun ger A enters the last mentioned gripping de vice so as to force the closed end of a. bag between its gripping jaws 64 and 65, and thereafter the plunger is withdrawn from the bag while the latter is held by the gripping device.

The bags are delivered one at a time to the gripping device, and after being delivered they should hang from the gripping device so that the collection of bags will not in any way interfere with the admission of the bags which are subsequently delivered by the bag-turning plunger.

For this reason, the collection of bags X is acted upon by a smoothing device in the form of a blade 86, shown in Figs. I, V, VI and VII, said blade having a straight edge adapted to engage the collection of bags X. The smoothing blade 86 is rigidly secured to the plate 47 which is carried by the reciprocating carriage C, to which the bagturning plunger is secured. I have already described the means whereby the plate 47 is moved from the position shown in Fig. VI to the position shown in Fig. VII. This plate 47 is secured to the arms 48 and d9, which are pivoted to the carriage C and which are thrown forwardly and downwardly by the operating arm 54 while the roller on said arm is traveling in the cam slot 57. The smoothing blade 86 therefore engages the collection of bags X so as to force said bags to the left from the position shown in Fig, VI, and at the same time this blade 86 moves downwardly to the position shown in Fig. VII, with the result of drawing the collection of bags downwarlly and at the same time smoothing them above the blade 86. The collection of bags at X is thus smoothed and compacted immediately after each bag-turning operation, so as to neatly arrange the collection of bags and at the same time prevent the bags from obstructing the path of the bag-turning plunger A.

I claim:

1. In a bag-turning machine, a bag-holder adapted to lie within the bag to be turned, said bag-holder comprising a pair of upper arms, a pair of lower arms below said upper arms and a support from which said arms extend, said arms being elongated so as to extend from the mouth of the bag to the rlosed end thereof, the extended ends of said arms which lie at the closed end of the bag being provided with friction faces around which the bag is turned and the e:: tended portions of said arms being capable of independent movement, and a stripping device whereby the bag is gradually stripped from the outer faces of said arms and at the same time gradually forced between said upper and lower arms.

2. In a bag-turning machine, a bag-holder adapted to lie Within the bag to be turned, said bag-holder comprising a pair of upper arms, a pair of lower arms below said upper arms and a support from which said arms extend, said arms being elongated so as to extend from the mouth of the bag to the closed end thereof, the extended ends of said arms which lie at the closed end of the l.=ag being provided with friction faces around which the bag is turned and the extended portions of said arms being capable of independent movement, and a stripping device whereby the bag is gradually stripped from the outer faces of said arms and at the same time gradually forced between said upper and lower arms, said stripping device including a bag-turning plunger in the form of a blade adapted to engage the closed end of the bag, and means whereby said blade is forced between said elongated upper and lower arms to gradually turn the bag around said friction faces.

In a bag-turning machine, a bag-holder adapted to lie within the bag to be turned, aid bag-holder comprising a pair of upper arms, a pair of lower arms below said upper arms and a support from which said arms extend, said arms being elongated so as to extend from the mouth of the bag to the closed end thereof, the extended ends of said arms which lie at the closed end of the bag being provided with converging side margins having friction faces around which the bag is turned and the extended portions of said arms being capable of independent movement, and a stripping device whereby the bag is gradually stripped from the outer faces of said arms and at the same time gradually forced between said upper and lower arms.

4. In a bag-turning machine, a movable bag-holder adapted to lie within the bag to be turned, said bag-holder comprising oppositcly disposed pairs of elongated arms adapted to extend from the mouth of the bag to the closed end'thereof, the extended ends of said arms which are adapted to lie at the closed end of the bag being provided witn friction faces around which the bag is turned and the extended portions of said arms being capable of independent movement, a stripping device whereby the bag is gradually stripped from the outer faces of said elongated arms and at the same time gradually forced between said arms, said stripping device including a movable plunger adapted to engage the closed end of the ag and means for moving said plunger be tween said arms to gradually turn the bag around said friction faces, said elongated arms being separated from each other to receive said plunger, and means whereby said elongated arms are shifted to bag-receiving positions at one side of the path of said plunger.

5. In a bag-turning machine, a movable bag-holder adapted to lie within the bag to be turned, said bag-holder comprising elongated arms adapted to extend from the mouth of the bag to the closed'end thereof, the extended ends of said arms which are adapted to lie at the closed end of the bag being provided with friction faces around which the bag is turned, a stripping device whereby the bag is gradually stripped from the out-er faces of said elongated arms and at the same time gradually forced between said arms, and means whereby one of said elongated arms is moved toward the other and shifted to a bag-receiving position at one side of said stripping device.

6. In a bag-turning machine, a bag-holder adapted to receive the months of the bags, a movable bag-turning plunger cooperating with said bag-holder to turn the bags, said bag-holder including a pair of bag-reciving arms, a movable carrier to which said arms are secured, a guide for said carrier, said guide beinglocated at an angleto the path of said plunger, and means whereby said carrier is reciprocated along said guide to shift said arms from bag-receiving positions beyond the path of said plunger to bag-turning positions at the path of the plunger.

7 In a bag-turning machine, a bag-holder adapted to receive the mouths of the bags, a movable bag-turning plunger cooperating with said bag-holder to turn the bags, a horizontal guide arranged approximately at a right angle to the path of said plunger, a carrier adapted to reciprocate along said guide, said bag-holder including a pair of upper armsand a pair of lower arms, said plunger being movable between said upper and lower arms, means whereby said upper and lower arms are secured to said carrier, and means for reciprocating said carrier to locate said arms in bag-receiving positions entirely beyond the path of said plunger.

8. In a bag-turning machine, a movable bag-holder including bag-holding members adapted to lie within the bag, a movable bagturning plunger cooperating with said bag holding members to turn the bag, and means whereby one of said bag-holding members is moved toward the other and shifted to a bag-receiving position entirely beyond the path of said plunger.

9. In a bag-turning machine, a movable bagholder including bag-holding members adapted to lie within the bag, a movable bagturning plunger cooperating with said bagholding members to turn the bag, and means whereby one of said bag-holding members is moved toward the other and shifted to a bag-receiving position entirely beyond the path of said plunger, said n'ieans including a shifter whereby the bag-holding members are displaced from the path of said plunger, and a device cooperating wit said shifter to move one of said bag-holding members toward the other.

10. In a bag-turning machine, a movable hag-holder including bag-holding members adapted to lie within the bag, a movable bag turning plunger cooperating with said bagholding members to turn the bag, and means whereby one of said bag-holding members is moved toward the other and shifted to a bagreceiving position entirely beyond the path of said plunger, said means including a movable carrier to which said bag-holding members are secured and a shifter whereby one of said bag-holding members is moved toward the other.

11. In a bag-turning machine a bagholder including bag-holding members adapted to lie within the bag, a movable bagturning plunger cooperating with said bagholding members to turn the bag, a carrier to which said bag-holding members are cured, a guide for said carrier, said guide being arranged at an angle to the path of said bag-turning plunger means for moving said carrier along said guide to locate said bag-holder in a bag-receiving position beyond the path of said plunger, and a shifter whereby one of said bag-holding members is shifted toward the other when the bagholder moves to its bagreceiving position.

12. In a bag-turning machine, a movable bag-holder including bag-holding arms adapted to lie within the bag, a movable bag-turning plunger cooperating with said bag-holding arms to turn the bag, a carrier to which said arms are secured, a guide for said carrier, said guide being located at an angle to the path of said plunger, means whereby said carrier is reciprocated along said guide to shift said arms from bag-turn ing positions at the path of said plunger to bag-receiving positions beyond the path of said plunger, one of said arms being pivoted to said carrier, and a shifter whereby the pivoted arm is moved toward the other arm when said arms move to their bag-receiving positions.

13. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholde'r including bag-holding arms adapted to lie within the bag, a movable bag-turning plunger cooperating with said bag-holding arms to turn the bag, a movable carrier to which said arms are secured, a guide for said carrier, said guide being located at an angle to the path of said plunger, means whereby said carrier is reciprocated along said guide to shift said arms from bag-turning positions at the path of said plunger to bag-receiving positions beyond the path of said plunger, one of said arms being pivoted to said carrier, and a shifter including a stationary guide member whereby the pivoted arm is shifted toward the other arm when said arms move to their bag-receiving positions.

14C. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholder including bag-holding arms adapted to lie within the bag, a movable bag-turning plunger cooperating with said bag-holding arms to turn the bag, a movable carrier to which said arms are secured, a guide for said carrier, said guide being located at an angle to the path of said plunger, means whereby said carrier is reciprocated along said guide to shift said arms from bag turning positions at the path of said plunger to bag-receiving positions beyond the path of said plunger, and means for moving one of said. bag-holding members to and the other and at the same time shifting said bagholder to a bag-receiving position entirely beyond the path of said plunger.

15. In a bag-turning machine, a movable bag-holder including bagholding arms adapted to lie within the bag, a movable bag-turning plunger cooperating with said bag-holding arms to turn the bag, a carrier to which said arms are secured, a guide for said carrier, said guide being offset from the axis of said plunger, means whereby said carrier is reciprocated along said guide to shift said arms from bag-turning positions at the path. of said plunger to bag-receiving positions beyond the path of said plunger, and means for moving one of said bag l'rold- 'ing members toward the other and at the same time shitting said bag-holder to a bagreceiving position entirely beyond the path of said plunger, said means including a reciprocating carriage to which said bag-holding members are secured, means for guiding said carriage in a line approximately at a right angle to the path oi said plunger, and a stationary guide member cooperating with said reciprocating carriage to move one of said bag-holding members toward and away from the other bag-holding member.

16. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholder adapted to lie within the bags, said bag-holder comprising a pair ot elongated upper arms and apair oi elon ated lower arms, the extended portions or said elongated arms being capable of independent movement, and bag-turning member (0- 'operating with said ba"-holdcr to turn the bags, said bag-turning .iemher being in the form of a blade whereby the bag is gradually stripped from and forced between said pairs of arms.

17. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholder adapted to lie within the bags, said bag-holder comprising a pair of elongated upper arms and a pair of elongated lower arms, the extended portions of said elongated arms being capable of independent movement, and a bag-turning member cooperating with said bag-holder to turn the bags, said bag-turning member being in the form of ablade whereby the bag is gradually stripped from and forced between said pairs of arms, and the width of said blade being approximately equal to the width of said bag holder.

18. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholder adapted to lie within the bags, said bag-holder comprising a pair of elongated upper arms and a pair of elongated lower arms, the extended portions of said elongated arms being capable of independent movement, and a bag-turning member cooperating with said bag-holder to turn the bags, said bag-turning member being in the term of a blade whereby the bag is gradually stripped from and forced between said pairs 0t arms, and said blade having round ed corners adapted to engage the cor ers oi the closed end of the bag.

19. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholder adapted to lie within the bag to be turned, said bag-holder comprising a. pair of elongated upper arms and a pair of lower arms, one pair oi: elongated arms being provided with lateral projections which extend toward the other pair of arms, said arms having friction faces around which the bags are turned at said projections, and the 'extended portions of said elongated arms being capable of independent movement, and a bag-turning member, cooperating with said bag-holder to gradually strip the b'agt'rom said arms, said bag-turning member being adapted to pass betweensaid projections.

20. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholder adapted to lie within the bags, said bag-holder comprising a pair of elongated upper arms and a pair of elongated lower arms, the end of said arms being provided with lateral extensions converging toward each other and adapted to engage the corners or the closed end of the bag, and the extended portions of said elongated arms being capable of independent movement, and a bag-turning member adapted to pass between said extensions.

21. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholder adapted to lie within the bags, said bag-holder comprising a pair of elongated upper arms and a pair of elongated lower arms, the ends of said arms being provided with lateral extensions converging toward each other and adapted to engage the corners ot the closed end of the bag, and the extended portions of said elongated arms being capable of independent movement, and a bag-turning plungerin the form of a blade movable between said extensions.

22. A bag-turning machine provided with a main bag-turning device, an auxiliary turning device for turning the corners at the mouth of the bag, said auxiliary device including a bag-opening member adapted to forcibly open the mouth of the bag, and means whereby said bag-opening member is actuated after the bag has been acted upon by said main bag-turning device.

A bag-turning machine provided with a bag-turning plunger adapted to lie within the bag, an auxiliary turning member movable with said plunger so as to extend into the mouth of the bag, and means for moving said auxiliary turning member away from said plunger to turn the corners at the mouth of the bag.

24:. In a bag-turning n'ia'chine, a bagholder, a main bag-turning member cooperable with said holder to turn the bag, and an auxiliary turning device cooperable with said member to turn the corners at the mouth of the bag, said auxiliary turning device including an auxiliary turning member adapted to extend into the mouth of the bag, a yielding support to which the auxiliary turning mel'nbe'r is secured, and means for actuating said support to move the auxiliary turning member away from the main bag-turning member.

25. In a bag-turning machine, a bag holder, a bag-turning plunger cooperating with said bag-holder to turn the bag, and an auxiliary device cooperating with said bag turning plunger to turn the corners at the mouth of the bag, said auxiliary device including a bag-opening member movable with said plunger and adapted to extend into the mouth of the bag, and means for moving said bag-opening member away from said plunger to tension said corners of the bag.

26. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholder, a bag-turning plunger cooper-able with said bag-holder to turn the bag, a carrier to which said plunger is secured, and an auxiliary device cooperable with said plunger to turn the corners at the mouth of the bag, said auxiliary device including a bag-opening member adapted to extend into the mouth of the bag, an operating member for moving said bag-opening member away from said plunger to tension said corners of the bag, and yielding means whereby said bag-opening member is secured to said operating member.

27. In a bag-turning machine, a bagholder, a bag-turning plunger c'ooperable with said bag-holder to turn the bag, a carrier to which said plunger is secured, and an auxiliary device cooperable with said plunger to turn the corners at the mouth of the bag, said auxiliary device including a bagopening member adapted to extend into the mouth of the bag, an operating member for moving said bag-opening member away from said plunger to tension said corners of the bag, an arm pivoted to said carrier and secured to said operating member, yielding means whereby said arm is secured to said bag-opening member, and a second arm arranged substantially parallel with the first mentioned arm and having its respective ends pivotally secured to said carrier and bag-opening member.

28. In a bag-turning machine, a bag holder, a bag-turning plunger cooperable with said bag-holder to turn the bag, a carrier to which said plunger is secured, and an auxiliary device cooperable with said plunger to turn the corners at the mouth of the bag, said auxiliary device including a bagopening member adapted to extend into the mouth of the bag, an operating member for moving said bag-opening member away from said plunger to tension said corners of the bag, said operating member being pivotally secured to said carrier, and a relatively stationary cam cooperating with said operating member to actuate said bag-opening member.

29. A bag-turning machine provided with a bag-turning plunger adapted to lie within the bag, an auxiliary turning member movable with said plunger so as to extend into the mouth of the bag, and means for moving said auxiliary turning member away from said plunger to turn the corners at the mouth of the bag, said plunger having a relatively wide end portion adapted to engage the closed end of the bag and a narrower intermediate portion adapted to lie at the mouth of the bag.

30. A bag-turning machine provided with a bag-turning plunger adapted to lie within the bag, an auxiliary turning member movable with said plunger so as to extend into the mouth of the bag, and means for moving said auxiliary turning member away from said plunger to turn the corners at the mouth of the bag, said plunger being in the "form of a blade having a relatively wide end portion adapted to engage the closed end of the bag and a narrower intermediate portion adapted to lie at the mouth of the bag.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I hereunto atfix my signature.

DANIEL BELOHER. 

